History of the 7th Infantry Regiment, Company A (Eagle Corps), National

Guard of California 1888-1917

This history was completed in 1940 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in conjunction with the

California National Guard and the California State Library.

Digitized by the History Office, Camp San Luis Obispo, 24 January 2015

Original document on file at the California State Library

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Company_A, Seventh Infantry Regiment, was f'orm~rly the B~le Corps, an· unattached company of the First Brigade, organized June 9~ 1881. On July 22, 1885, the Eagle Corps and the San Diego City Guard, . another unattached company, formed a new Battalion knonn as the eventh Infantry Battalion. The Eagle · corps was , thereafter, lmov,n

as Company A. Three years later, on i.1ay 5, 1888, the Seventh In­fa.ntry Battalion was reorgc:.nized and t~came the Seventh Infantry ·egiment,. with Company A retaining the same letter designation •

.. In May of 1888, dissension arose among t he officers of t he Seventh Infantr:r Regiment and it was feared for a time that these petty jealousies would result in the disruption of the newly organized regiment, and revort 1 t back as a battalion. It had been l':Il:or.n for sometime past that there had been !"Jore or less inter·nnl discord, a~d the officers had divided into two factions , but the ~en had kept their grieva.nc(;;S to themselves and it was thought t hat per­haps these differences h:1d been adjusted. Consequently, when it was reported that Brigadic;r-General J. R. Uathews, comoander of the First Brigade, had received a very peremptory letter from Governor R. w. Vt'aterman reque~ting his resignation, it created quite a sen­sation, and protests against the Governor• s action v1ere heard on all sides a!> it r:a:: knovm th~t much of the success of the regiment was due to the efforts of that officer. General Mathews, although talcen completely by surprise, o.t. once wrote out his resigna tion, and was about to forward it to Headquarters, when a number of his brother officern heard of it and demanded that he witlu1old it, as they YiCrc satisfied that ther~ was some scher.1e behi nd the matter hich they vm.nted inveztigutcd . Acting on their advice the General

withheld the resignation for the ti!lle being. A meet ing of the line officers of the Seventh hegiment was held in tne armory May 5, l88v~ for the purpose of electing a colonel and a l~cutenant-colonel, at hich time there was a discussion of General Mathews' resignHtion.

Lieutenant-Colonel Kurtz presided over the ~eeting, the captains and lieutenants of.the seven companies composing the regiment being present . Major w. H. H. Russell was elected Colonel; Captain A. T. Palmer of Pomona, Lieutenant-Colonel; and Lieutenant Benjamin of Sru1 Bernardino, Major in place of Russell who had been promoted to Colonel. There wc.::.s a little tiff betTieen Lieutenant Daniels of Pomona and Captain Palmer gro~ing out of the election, during hich there 1'las talk of · unfair dealing. In order to prevent serious

·trouble arisi1'1..g, Captain fi!ood brought the meeting to a close by calling the members attention to the fact that General Mathevts' resignation had been requested by the Gove2·nor, and moved t hat a vote of thanks be tendered the General for hLs valuable and effi­cient service. Beneral Mathews had been an~ eble _ ~d efficient officer and had done much for the guard in the southern part of the Stnte. The interested parties did not pl·opose to allow his resignation to be sent in without some cause being sho\"111. The Governor had exceeded his authority in sending so peremptory a j :-

letter in demanding General Mathews' resignation, and the public anted an investigation before any furth:::r action was taken.*

.ooo. '*Los Angeles Times, May 6, 1888, page 2 , colu.'llll 5. '

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_ _ _ --··Y A ( Conti.."'lued)

Activities: (continued) There is no record of any investigation and General Mathews , in face of Governor Waterman insistent demands and no alternative but to obey, and on May 26 , 1888, he resigned as commander of the "First Brigade. Governor Waterman appointed his lifelong friend, H. H. Boyce, of Los Angeles to succeed General Uathews .

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P~jutant General Report , 1887-1888, page 4.

~ **Record Book, Comnany B, Ninth Infantry, page 4.

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Activitiez:(continued)

.-....Y A (Cont inu ed)

Jeptemb~r 18 , 1883, Company A v;as agaj_n host nles of the Seventh Infantry Rc-eiment, y;hen f.ngeles, a:.:. e~.;cort for tho membo:3rs of the The st1·eets of Los Jl .. ngcles we:L'e lined. v,l L11 an

lurlnili ty, .. nor·c than one hundred an w1 tness:i.ng tl:e par·ade-. The Seventn In1:an­scort or honor. At the he<!d rode Brigadi er­

:?.oyal horse, el.3corted by hiti soldierly staff. The Titglment, Cvlonel W. H. H. nussell, com­

manding, ca...ue along •;ri th the . swinging. s t•.3p of veterans, having seven full co!npanies and looking like an army 1 tself. . The men evinced the effeGt of str.ict dizcipllne, of am.bi tlon to be all that tb-:; nane soldier conveys . Their step, alignment and de;>ort­rncnt could not; have been better . Com!Jany A, commanued by Willia Schreiber, looked .very fine ;_tn their ne\7 uriii'orms~ It was the oldest ::: .. nd. one of the best companles in the Seventh Regi~tmt. Taken as a •1l11.)le the regitnent was a gr·eat c1·edi t to th~ .National Guard , c.nd in its narch itJ.g won ap{)lav.~fe without stint fron the many veteran ofi'J.ce.cs prHsent . Colonel Russell, his !>taff, and the regiment uade a fine imuression all along the line .*

1889 1 every organization in the [itate CompAny A, together with the other· units

ent into <.;a:.rnp 2.t :>ac.i.fic Bead1, near the city of or eleven days, co:m.Jencing on August 3, 1889, nnd t thirteenth. This was a Brig ado enc&.T,pm.Emt,. under

coc:nc:tnd of Brigadier-General E. P . John~;on . It. ljiC:S the only b:i.."igade camp r.elU. dm·ing the year . . The camp whi.ch wae designated "Cu:r.p Dimonc1 11 in honor of Major- General VI. H .. Dimond, was very plec..santly located on a level plateau over loolc:i.ng the ocean, and

as ?:"ee.ched from 8!::.....'1 Diego by the motor line rlL.""11ling to raci:fic. Beach . Through the kindness of Brigcdier- Gtmeral B. H. Grierson; United States Army, conmanding the Di~trict of Arizona.J a Cor:tpany of t.he Ninth Infantry, United States Array, was ordered to camp. ith the Brigade . The <.;amp vras ·well laid out . The ·tents v:er

entirely new, the headquarters tent being ;.i large one , nearly one hundred and fifty feet ' long , divided by board partiti.ans into officers , reception- rooms , mess- rooms and a large apartment fitted with seat s for t he c onvenience of· an audience while l istening to the musi c of t he regimentlll band , ~:hich played t.tlere

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~ * tcord Book, Company B, entE.l_.t page· 10 ..

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COMPANY A (Continued)

Activities: (continued) _

everJ day and evening during the encB!Ilp!!lent. The officers and each co~pany were provided with mess tents, and the messi1~ arrangements were better them any of the other encampments. The troops consisted of the General and the staff officers of the· First Brigade, . and the Seventh Regi~ent of Infantry. Captain Bailey and Lieutenants Robertson and Wittenmyer of ·Company .E, Ninth Infantry Regiment, United States Arm.y, personally super­int~nded the drills of the various companies and the·regiment. Through these officers r corrections and .instruction, and the example set by the company of regulars, the command made remark­able progress in drill during the time spent in camp. Several

, co!D.panies had their :mnual target practice, as prescribed by la?r and gener·al orders, while in camp but with the limited time at their disposal, and the i mpossibility of providing proper facilities, the practice was not &. success. The habit of having companies of' the regular service encamp with the National Guard orgc:..nizations vms growing in popularity :tn the Eastern States, and ·w:1s one out of which the greatest good l'!Ould come to both services. The r~markable progress ~ade in drill and discipline in the camp of the First Brigade, was due to two things. First, the presence of the Brigade Corrunal'lder, General Johnson, and his efficient staff .. Secondly, to the presence of the regulars in camp. It wa~ hoped that the practice would be continued, and that hereafter a:t all encampments there -r.ould be present bodies of regular troops.

Shortly after the close of the Brigade encampment> Company A ade a determined effort to increase their military· efficiency.

At the meeting which the company held on September 7, 1889, a · complete reorganization of its civil government was effected. A strong constitution cmd a vigorous setof by-laws were adopted nergetic officers'· were ele.cted to enforce them, as it was de­

termined by the members to bring this company rapidly to the front. Some of the salient points of the new by-laws were:

1. Monthly dues, fifty cents 2. Absence fro:J drills '1.i.thout excuse, fin..,,

privates fifVJ ce~ts; non-commissioned officers seventy-five cents; officers one dollar.

3. Absence from parades, fine, privates one dollar; non-commissioned officers two dollars and fifty cents; officers five dollars.**

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'*Adjutant Genex·al Report, 1839-1890, page 9. 1 **Los Aruteles Herald, September 8, 1889, page 2, column 3 •

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(Continued)

Activities: (contL1ued)

There is no ~ecord of Company A participating in any ~~usual act­ivities until they attended. the First· Brigad·e encampment held at Santa Monica, August 15 18~1, to August twenty-fourth. The Brigade consisting of the Sevtnth and Ninth Infantry Hegiments ,

as commanded by Colonel Vl. G. Schreiber and E. B. Spileman, and numbered nearly six hundred men . · The camp, designated as Camp Johnson, in honor of Brigadier-General E. P. Johnson, Brigade Commander, was situated on Oce~ Avenue,. on the nor·thern boundary of the city, and was wi th.in a stones throw of the ocean,. the broad expanse of the Pacific being completely in view. The camp v:as tastefully and properly laid out. The Adjutant General appointed Lieutenant Colonel A. D. Cutler, as inspector of the Brigade 'l'he encampment was a failure, as Lieutenant Colonel Cutler in his renort to the Adjutant General, on August 251 1891, stated.

ttForm.ations for review were tardy and far from showing the necessa~v acquaintru1ce with the tactics, particularly by guides and chiefs of subdivisions. I!al'ch in review was fairly gqod, alignments and distances fair, salutes of officers generallY' poor, lacking snap, · and failing gene1•ally to look to the review­ing officer. The general conduct and aspect of officers and men was orderly and soldierly although too much argument and solicitation took the place of absolute co~and at co~­pany drills, showtng the failure of both to recognize the difference between officer and soldier while on duty. The chief faults rid omissions that were noticeable were clear­

ly due to a lack of opportunity for regimental assemblage and of constant acquaintance of field, staff, and line officers11 and regiment­al formations or movements.. So long hoT;ever, as a regimental organization exists its officers ust be held res ·onsible for whatever unpro­

fitable results arise, as well as complimented for the ~ood features of their commands. large proportion of the men in both regiments

· ere unclean and showed lack of ·personal inter­est in .their appearance, particularly as to gloves, collars and boots. As sufficient notice of the inspection bad be~n given to allow time for preparation, the lack of ~ffort to make a more soldier-like appearance was notiqeable and should be charged to 'both officers and men.

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COI'iPM'Y (Continued)

Activities: (continued)

Colonel Cutler also stated in his report that the- sanitary arrangements of the encampment were very unsatisfactory. 1ne sinks were poorly built and located, and in a most filthy con­dition. The garbage was also.poorly provided for and would have caused serious medical trouble ultimately, but for the·

. location of the camp on an open bluff, constantly exposed to a strong sea breeze.*

The members of Company A were displeased over the r eport of Lieutenant Colonel Cutler. It was stated that he vms only in camp a few hours, and therefore not able to judge properly . There \vns some dispute about the officers salute, and it was generally regarded that ne allowed hi~ personal feelings to color his report. The matter was to be brought to the attention of the Governor, and an investigation demanded.** There is no record of any investigation being held but Colonel Cutler's re­port was officially published in the Adjutant General:' s Report 1'or 1891•

Company A attended the Seventh Hegiment encampment held at Camp Anacapa, Ventura County, from August 17 to 25, 1892• Lieutenant Colonel Cutler was again division inpector and on this qccasion the improvement was so noticeable that he ·SGnt in the follo~~ng report to the Adjutant General.

"Camp well located . General appearance of the c~mp streets very good. Kitchen ru1d mess tents exceptionally clean and in splendid or·der. General health excellent, very fe?l cases of sickness being reported. Military courtesy very good. Officers and men alike seem to use every effort to conduct the:nsclves as soldiers, and bring the regiment up to a high standard. The regimental drum and bugle corps deserve special mention for military bearing and cour­tesy. The tents Vlere .!lodels of neatness.. Uni­forms and e quipment in first class condition. Improvements in the regiment generally had been very great during the past few months, nnd the officers are entitled to a large amount of credit considering the disadvantages they have been ln­boring under during the past few years."**it

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· *Adjutant General Report, 1891-1892, pages 162-164.

,**San Francisco Chronicle, September 21 1 1891, page~2 , column 5.

·***Adjutant General;Report, 1893-1894, page 153. -8-

c (Continued)

Activities: (continued)

In accordance with the recommendation of the Board of Location and Organization, General Order No . 17, was issued December 7, 1895, which consolidated the Seventh and Ninth Infantry Regi­ments into three battalions of Infantry with four companies each .. * on· December 9, 1895, General Order No . 18 organized the three new battalions in the First Brigade into one regiment to be known as the Seventn Infantry.** Company A retained the same designating letter

On Jll.i.'1e 28, 1894, a nationwide Hailroad Strike completely par­alyzed the transportation facilities of the State. Delayed United States Mail piled up on every hand, and it was this fact hich caused the strikers to come into conflict Y.1i th "Uncle Sam."

On July 1, 1894, the United States took a definite stand in the matter when the United States Attorney General sent instructions to United States Marshals whose terri tory was affected b;r the strike to execute the processes of the courts and preveni;. any hindrance to the free circulation of the mails. For some un­lmovm reason Company A and the other units of' the Seventh Infan­try were not called int::> active service. The Dnit~d States

··[arshal . for the south district made a request upon General Thomas H. Ruger, coi!l!llanding the V!estern Division of the Regular Army, for assistance at Los Angeles

5 and six companies of P..eg-

alars (three hundred and twenty nen under command of William R. Shafter were disuatched from San Francisco to the southern city at l0: 3b P. M.· July second. The negular troops experienced little dif'ficul ty in the south ·and ·without meetin.g any serious resistance took possession of all railroad property in Los Ang e_le s .. *** On April 22, 1896 1 Company A and the other military units in the First Brigade marched in celebration of the La Fiesta De Los Angeles, a street carnival held each year by the merch~1ts of

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·*Adjutant General Heport, 1895-1896, General Order No . 17, page 86.

'**Adjutant General Report, 1895-1896, General Order No. 18, pa~e 88.

• ***For further details refer to National Guard and the Railroad Strike. Adjutant General's Off'ice.

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f Conti.nued)

Activities: (continued)

Los ll.ngeles. The parade was l~d by Marshal !iadison T. Owens. Just behind rode Colonel William Spencer and M. A. Costerisan, chief trumpeter to the Marshal. Brigadier General C. F. A. Last, com;.aanding the military division ,. rode at the head of his staff . At the re~r of tee staff rode Gene Maxwell , quartermaster sergeant of Troop D, carrying the Brigc.dier General's banner. The beauti-­fu.l ~ilken t'lag flaunted in the breeze triumphantly, a shimmering banner of blue, edged with silver lace, with a solitary star in the center. One of the most pleaSing sigl1ts included in the pro­cession was the Seventh Inf'antry Eegiment, National Gua1~d of Cal:Sornia. The whole regiment \\as there, seven hundred men swept along the street, marching with measured tread. There was the flutter of flags, the tra'llp of hundreds of feet and the crash nd blar·e of the mili tal"'Y band . It was a spectacle to delight

the soul 'of anyone with a s park of mi1ltary fire in him.*

Col1puny A and ti"le other units of the Seventh I11l'Entry cont.inued to improve their t1ili tar-y shmda1·d. The First Brig ade encamp­ment held in Santa Lbnica from August 4 to 141 1897 ~ was a model of rn.ili tary efficiency.. The camp was strictly speaking, a work­ing camp. From reveille, which -v.'as sounded at 5 A. M., until evening mess at 6:30 P. t1., five and one half hours was devoted to camp policing, drills and extended order exe1·cises, one hour nd a hali' to dress parade-!:: , guard mounting and reviews. Vlhile

only four and one half how·s vrere given to meals and recreation. The time actually const~ed in formal review was very smell, the record showing th&t only three were held during the entire cBI!lp. Tney ~ere as follows: one in honor of the Hajor General, another in honor of the Adjutant General, and the third, a review of the Brig~dc by the G€neral commanding. It was the po"licy of this encampment to P,evote as little time to these purely cerem.:mlal atters as vms consistent Tiith the necessities of the occasion

and it was preferc;;ble to devote every moment to actual wor·k in practical d~·ill instruction. To this end, every man not actually engaged in other ~ork or in the hospital, was required to drill . And y,hile the work was considerable, it was cheerfully done, and ith an apparent endeavor to accomplish something. The officers

of the Seventh Infantry, which formed the bulk of 't~he camp, espe­cially the battalion cmn:::na.nders, v1ere hard rmrking end very effi­cient. In some instro1ces the -personnel oi' t..~e line officers

.ooo.

'*The Los Angeles Daily Times, April 23, 1896, page 9, column 1.

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Activities: (continued)

might have been improved upon. Ignorance and lack of experl.ence ere the principal faults, faults ·which were materially remedied

by the camp experience. Great interest was taken by officers · and men in the problem of minor tactics. The only regret express­ed being that the lack ·of time in camp precluded the possibility of having more of them. Should the Brigade go into camp in 1898, ith the preliminary work they had in 1897, there was no doubt

but .what it would be ripe for continued 'Work and plenty of it, along the line of practice marches and theoretical engagements. The men had taken great interest in these drills as being entireiy different from the ordinary evolutions of drill regulations and savoring so ·much of actual service.*

Company A was destined not to engage in any theorectical warfare n 1898, as events were taking shape which were of a mare serious

nature. On April 23 1 1898, the.United States declared war with Spain. Company A and the other companies of the Seventh Infantry left Los Angeles for San Francisco, M.ay 6 1 1898, where they were mustered into the United States Service on May ninth under the com.rnand of Colonel John R. Berry. The Regiment was· ordered to Camp llerritt, San Francisco, May twenty-fifth, and returned to Camp Merriam at the Presidio, August twenty-fourth, V:here it re­mained until October thirteenth. The troops were then ordered to Los Angeles, arriving on the fo1.1rteenth, .and was furloughed until ~ovember twelfth, when the regiment reassembled and reported for duty at Los Angeles a.."ld established Camp Pratt. The Regiment as mustered out on December 2, 1898.**

There is only a limited source of information concerning the act­ivities of Campm1y A for the two years following the close of the Spa~ish American War, due to the fact that the various companies of the Seventh Infantry were undergoing a period of readjustment.

recognJ.tion of the patriotism and sacrifices made by the mem­bers of the National Guard, -·who volunteered and entered the ser­vice of the United States in the Spanish American War of 1898,

· *Adjutant General

Adjutant General

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eport, 1896-189~, pages 17-19.

refer to Histor v~ -"""·~ ...... v • .:. .......... ww..u... ,_,"'-4 ........... <11111...., • .a. ....... '--' •"--·~-teers in the - · - · --- ·

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CO...WANY A (Continued)

Activities: (continued)

the State Legislature in 189~, passed a law giving to the compan­ies and members of the National Guard who werenustered into the ~ervlce of the United States and subsequently discharged there­from,· the privilege of reporting back and returnine to duty. The men were to be given full credit'for continuous service from the time they r;m·e mustered into the United States Service until they rep-.>rted back for duty in the Guard,provided that they reported within 150 days after being r.1ustel'ed out of the iJni ted States. Service .i~

Company A, together with the First Brigad€, attended a Camp of Instruction in 1901, when the entil'O Nat::tonal Guard assembled at Sa.nta Cruz from .June tourteenth to twenty-thir·d, tmder the com:nand of !!.c.:.jor-Genei·al John H. Dickinson. This was the first time in many years tf1at the Guard he.d been ass~..mbled :in one en­campnent, and the instruc..;ti ~n i e1parted to general and staff offi­cers in the assembling of and caring for the troops was valuable. The camp, d~signated Camp Gage, in honor of Governor Heney T. Gage, was situated upon whet \1as called Laveaga Heights, a·oout two ·and one half miles from the tomt of Santa Cruz, and about th1·ee miles from the Pacific Ocean . It v:as a table--land cr plateau havir..g · an elevation of about three hundred feet above the sea. Company A and the other u11.:t ts of the .First Brigade had their camp laid out upon the northeasterly ) Ortion o.f the plL<teau lyi!.lg north of the main road through the reser·vat:Lon, and just ·cast oi' and adjo'lninR the Di visicm· Camp gate. The company streets

ere laid off at right angles to the read , each cor.tpany having an entir·e street. There WGl'€! five tents on each side of the street, spaced fifteen f'eet, center to center, with the streets h1enty feet wldE: , at the head of which v1ere two tents for the com~:>ari offlcers, facing, north down the street and at right angles to the other tents. The complil1'ies were separated by a ten fo0t alley and the battalions by a twenty foot alley from each other . ~he ajor's and Adjutant 1 s tents were placed on the right of their

battalions. , On the side farthest from the company offices a thj..r.ty foot street ran parallel to the 1 .. oad, and the kitc!lens were placed upon the north side of this street. hegirnental headquarters was on the right of -the First Battalion and faced west do¥m the thirty .foot streeJ;. the regimental stuff being to

.ooo.

·*Adjutant General Report, 1899-1900, page 8.

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ct1V1ties: (continued)

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(Continued)

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Activities: (continued)

panie..,

Troops. there v;as code.*

The General m.ck M.ili tia Act 1908, giving the various stat with the rules and regulation

a'llended in 1906, and again in until January 21, 1910, to comply

that g>Overn the regular arrrJ.t. in

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. *San Francisco Chronicle, January 21, 1903, page 14, column 3.

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COMPANY A (Continued)

Activities: (continued)

times of peace -*

On the morning o:r April 18, 1906, tnere occurred in ~an Jo'rancisco a cat2strophe that changed the whole t>OCial and cconoJ:J.ic life ·of the city. At 5:13 there was heard a distinct rumbling deep in the earth, .followed by a severe earthquake wh'!.ch laid :nost of the city in ruins. Bui.ldine s collapsud and .f'lu!tic.s broke out in many p.laces, the brokan gas IUains contributing added . ter:·or. The breaking of the water mains by the earthqua)<e left tlle city def'ensel·e.ss aea1nst the .fla~es and bt:ildings ·were ct:;rnamited to l'event the s pread o£• the .fire; hut all was futile U."ltil broad

Van Hess Avenue was re!!ched, and a l'ortunute te'Oiporary change in the di1•ection of the ntnct drove the fl~mes buclr over the al­ready desolated district. Co.w.pany A together l7l th the other · units of the Seventh !n.fantry left Los Angeles ror Oa.l(land, pril 21 , 1905. The troops arrived in Oul~lund Apl'il twenty­

second,, and were ox·det·ed in to cal:!lp at Lincoln Park . Corupa.ny ~~·as placed under the cornmm1d of ~ajor 7ruman Coi:e, and staticned

t Adams Point, Oakland. The dut;r performed by these hoops con­Sisted m<tin.ly ln maintaining order :>t the dif:fP.rent refugee camps, at supt1ly depots, and throughout the towns where they were sta­tion"d,, and at Oakland, <>ssisting the local police, especially . during the: night time; escorting supply W:igons to and from ~ Francisco, transfe r•rir1g large s::x:::s of mon.Jy :f':ro::u the Ui.1i ted Ot:ltes Mint at San Frt>nci.sco, to the local bonks i'l Oakland, and esc::>rting l:.i vil or·i~oners, tempo::·nl:ll.y :in· confinement at Alcatraz Island, to the ssveral cmmty jaiJ.:; in and around Oakla.Yld. ~11 discipline and general morals of the troops ITe..s excellent ruJ.d no complaint wa.s at any time made of an:; r::cn coaducting themscl ves in an unsoldie!·ly manner. \':'hen cne , considern that duty of this

as cnt'ir-ely !lew to the c:en 3_nd to almost all of th ficers, too much praise could not be given the Guard. It was

true that the Gunrc duty was faulty, hut considering the !!:any calls macie on the men for escort and patrol duty, both da;;r fu"1d night, to which the men at all. t'i' oe s a.'lswered me s t cheerfully, considerable exnerience wa:J gained by tho troops, both officers

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• *Section 1325 of the Military Laws of the United States, on file Adjutant General's Office.

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COMP~~y A (Continued)

.Activities: (continued)

c.nd men. Co!Ilpany A and the various units of the Seventh Infantry entraineq for their home stations llay twelfth, Company A arriving in Los P.ngeles, Hay 13, 1906."*

as brow:ht to a nev.

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• *Adjutant General Heport, 1906, pages 40, 41, bl, 52.

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COMPANY A (Continued)

Activities: (continued)

The officers and men were unanimous in ez.pressing appreciation of the coU!·tesy and painstakL"'lg efforts taken by the Artillery troops to make their tour of duty pleasant and instructive.*

A joint army and militia camp of 1908, at Atascadero , Caltfor.nia, Company A and the other unj. tf.' of in Atascadero in two sections on on the morni:nc. of October 5. 190, ...

were

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· *Adjuta.ii.t Gen l Roport , 1907-1908, pages 41- 47.

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Continued)

~et1vit1es: (continued)

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.. jutant uener ort, 1910, 3-.t.

Activities: (continued)

as evident

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Y A (Continued) ---~

Activities: (contlnuee)

Governor Gillett should hear it • . Colonel Weaver re::1d portions of it, the balance of th~ papers , the :nore technical details, wou~d be read by him the following day. Colonel Weaver \'i<lS regarded by proL'esDiona.l soldiers as one of the finest officers in the army and his paper had not only the weight of his own experience and authority, by ~ad been read and ap.proved by the War Dcpartl'!len t. For so~iletime, he stated by v:av of prcf:!cc, the 1!7ar College had been !nctking an intricate study of a military policy fer this country. In this sch~:ne of defense, the N·ationa.l Guard. had come to the front as a pro·.at.nent feature. Th~'? question invol vin._~ the National Guard w:::.s ftmdamcntal ar:.d .far- reach5_ng . ·:... eneral Oliver , the Assistant Secretary of \~far, had m~1de a.."l ioport:1nt suggef,t:Lon, th~t the cotmtry be divlried up into t;eogrephlcal :nilitary dis­tricts. F~)llowing the businer.s r.leeting, the delegates 77ere to ta~e a trip t.o Pasadena c.t..ld Mt. Lor:1..?. At 11 or cloclr.: on 8epte·.1ber twenty-eighth, "che Signal Cor:;_)s, i.n l 1.onor of the con7ent1on, gav8 the ·:>n.ly tnili tary bnlloon ase.ension on the Pacific Coact, and the first one by a Nationa.l G·J.r.rds~an ~ ::P.he asce~1sion was made .fr Chutes ball p:~rl~ . 1.'he balloon b<.wlr.:et ~ Lie1~tcnant Larun broi<:-e the world's r ecord. -l~

Company A \Hi.S callEd to Santa ilonica, GalifrJrnia, Sc~1:e:nber 3, 191:::-, \',hen that city Fr~~ placed U11de1· nartiDl law, during th firG at Ocean Park . The fj.re was believed to huve st~1·tcd fro a cigarette thrmm ctlrelessly into a heap of bedding, and th loss incurred estimated ut thr·ee mill1on dollE.rs. The i'lflr!es swept through the heiJrt of Ocean Part;: :J.nd J·oared its V!ay . so swif Gly tin·ough a eit.y of pain ted ec.stl.ez, c,musemcnt resorts and a..Yld busi!1ess blocks that nea1·ly a dozen pei·sons v;ero forced tu leap into the sea to escape from the f"-ery furnace v1hich had tr ped them, one ma.n losing his life in the water .. ::undreds o others were dri v·en pell- !nell from their hol'lles by the su.dd.c!:1 rush of the flames . Arriving at the beach the people swelled the crowds to a veri table mob. People poured in from Santa I.1on:L ... , Redondo , and the smaller settlcrrwn r.s, until Ocean Park on the day of its .:U~aster JJI'Obably had ~1or·e people within its borders than any pr·evious time in L ts h:f.;,tory. No car,es of looting wcra report­ed, though the cl ty was for three hours under ~artinl 2-aw • .,.-,.*

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-*Los ~~geles Times, September 28, 1909, Section 11, page 11co1umn 3 •

. **Los Angeles Times September 4, 1912, page l, columns 1-7.

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COMPANY A (Continued)

Activities: (continued)

There is no record of Company A participating in any unusual activities until the call b,r the President of the United States for California troops for •exican border service was received by Governor Hiram l'f.- Johnson, June 18, 1916. Upon the Governor's orders, California National Guardsmen 'l'Tere im1"1ediately directed to assemble in their ~rmories and establish camp. Within twelve hours, all co~anding officers had reported their organizations reaqy tor e~training.* On June twenty-ninth, Company A was mustered into Federal service apd transferred to Nogales, Arizona, arriving there July 6, 1916. The site selected for the combined camps of the Seventh and fifth Regi ents was a broad, sheltered expanse iess than two miles northwest of Nogules and about the same distance from the border. ' Whi'le Kerlcrari troops maneuvered on the crest of a ridge four mil~s across the bo~er, the Califor.nia troops put in a long and hard day' s work on th~ camp si "es .,allot ted them. ·At nightfall, 'ever-r tent had been pitched, trenches had been dug around ~hem to guard against sudden heavy ~ains, and fires crackled merrily under the big cooking ranges.** ~ompany A recained on dut7 patroling the border until Octobe~ · l9, 1916, when they returned to Los Angeles. Company A was mustered· out of Fe4eral Service on November 11, 1916.

four months later, Co~pany A was again called into federal Service to participate in the greatest armed conflict the world has ever known. Governor l'f. D. Stephens, upon orders from the Secretary of War, calling the California National Guard into service, ordered the organizations of the Second, fifth and Seventh Infantr7 Regiments to assemble at their armories, March 26, 1917, and begin recruiting.*** Two weeks later, April 9, Company A was mustered into Federal service.**** On October 14, 1917, Co~p&DT 1 became part of the 160th Infantry.*****· For further information concerning the activities of this unit refer to History of Company A, 160th Infantry, lOt~ Division •

• oCo.

*Adjutant General Report, 1914-1920, page 13.

**Los Angeles Tribune, July 7, 1916, page 2, column 1.

***Adjutant General Report, 1914-1920, page 22.

****Muster Roll, Company A, Seventh Inf. Reg., April, 1917, Adjutant Generals' 1iles.

*****.ldjut~t General Report, 1920-1926, page 26.

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